The Director-General: Cooperative Government
Mr. Elroy Africa
Republic of South Africa

Dear Mr. Africa

The Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Anton Bredell, is derelict in his duty and I implore you to advise your Minister Baloyi to intervene and impel Bredell to act.

In service of brevity and currency I quote events only since November.

On October 26, I informed the Western Cape Premier, Ms Helen Zille, and Bredell, that the Executive Mayor of Oudtshoorn, Gordon April, had breached the Code of Conduct for Councillors and that s32 (6) (a) & (b) of the MFMA should be invoked. I offered prima facie documentary evidence and demanded that Bredell act ito s106 of the Systems Act.

Not only was my information ignored, but Bredell, on November 1, had a meeting with April and afterwards issued a media statement in support of April’s administration.

The local AfriForum Chair, Mr. George Kersop, subsequently laid a charge of theft with the DPCI and April was arrested and appeared in Court on charges of theft and intimidation on December 23. He will appear again on February 3.

Bredell did not respond and on December 9 an additional R313,267.99 was paid to Avontuur & Genote! This in flagrant disregard of a current SIU Report implicating Avontuur & Genote in maladministration.

On December 7, I reminded Bredell that the then Acting Municipal Manager, Mr. Mpho Mogale, informed Bredell, according to the minutes of the November 1 meeting with April, that the SIU directed Mogale “to implement the SIU Report by November 30”. I wanted to know whether the implementation was effected and whether Bredell was monitoring the execution.

Bredell did not respond.

On January 17, I reported to Bredell that the Mayco is in breach of s67 of the MFMA and that exigent intervention was demanded.

Yet again…

I submit that s106 of the Systems Act demands MEC intervention when an MEC “has reason to believe that a municipality in the province cannot or does not fulfil a statutory obligation binding on that municipality or that maladministration, fraud, corruption or any other serious malpractice has occurred or is occurring in a municipality in the province…”

I have been advised on civil action but is repulsed by this route to compel a public servant to fulfil his incumbencies.

The Western Cape Minister of Local Government is derelict in his duty and I submit that he and his government be sanctioned…